1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a system for delivering information to a device via wireless communication, and more specifically, to systems for delivering an offline version of a full-scale Internet website to the receiving device of targeted consumer via short-range wireless communication.
2. Description of Prior Art
Modern society has quickly adopted, and become reliant upon, handheld devices for wireless communication. For example, cellular telephones continue to proliferate in the global marketplace due to technological improvements in both the quality of the communication and the functionality of the devices. These wireless communication devices (WCDS) have become commonplace for both personal and business use, allowing users to transmit and receive voice, text and graphical data from a multitude of geographical locations. The communication networks utilized by these devices span different frequencies and cover different broadcast distances, each having strengths desirable for various applications.
Cellular networks facilitate WCD communication over large geographic areas. These network technologies have commonly been divided by generations, starting in the late 1970s to early 1980s with first generation (1G) analog cellular telephones that provided baseline voice communications, to the now emerging 4G streaming digital video content planned for the 2006-2007 timeframe. GSM is an example of a widely employed 2G digital cellular network communicating in the 900 MHZ-1.8 GHZ band in Europe and at 1.9 GHZ in the United States. This network provides voice communication and also supports the transmission of textual data via the Short Messaging Service (SMS). SMS allows a WCD to transmit and receive text messages of up to 160 characters, while providing data transfer to packet networks, ISDN and POTS users at 9.6 Kbps. The Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), an enhanced messaging system allowing for the transmission of sound, graphics and video files in addition to simple text, has also become available in certain devices. Soon emerging technologies such as Digital Video Broadcasting for Handheld Devices (DVB-H) will make streaming digital video, and other similar content, available via direct broadcast to a WCD. While long-range communication networks like GSM are a well-accepted means for transmitting and receiving data, due to cost, traffic and legislative concerns, these networks may not be appropriate for all data applications.
Short-range wireless networks provide communication solutions that avoid some of the problems seen in large cellular networks. Bluetooth™ is an example of a short-range wireless technology quickly gaining acceptance in the marketplace. A Bluetooth™ enabled WCD transmits and receives data at a rate of 720 Kbps within a range of 10 meters, and may transmit up to 100 meters with additional power boosting. A user does not actively instigate a Bluetooth™ network. Instead, a plurality of devices within operating range of each other will automatically form a network group called a “piconet”. Any device may promote itself to the master of the piconet, allowing it to control data exchanges with up to seven “active” slaves and 255 “parked” slaves. Active slaves exchange data based on the clock timing of the master. Parked slaves monitor a beacon signal in order to stay synchronized with the master, and wait for an active slot to become available. These devices continually switch between various active communication and power saving modes in order to transmit data to other piconet members.
More recently, manufacturers have also began to incorporate various resources for providing enhanced functionality in WCDs (e.g., components and software for performing close-proximity wireless information exchanges). Sensors and/or scanners may be used to read visual or electronic information into a device. A transaction may involve a user holding their WCD in proximity to a target, aiming their WCD at an object (e.g., to take a picture) or sweeping the device over a printed tag or document. Machine-readable technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID), Infra-red (IR) communication, optical character recognition (OCR) and various other types of visual, electronic and magnetic scanning are used to quickly input desired information into the WCD without the need for manual entry by a user.
The proliferation of wireless communication technology means that users have the ability to communicate without being restricted by time or location. This accessibility has created a desire for information providers (e.g., business, educational institutions, government, etc.) to tap into this potential. Currently, not only can a targeted consumer see an advertisement at a location (e.g., store, restaurant, mall, bus stop, train station, etc.), but at that moment when the user's interest is peaked, the user has the ability to use their WCD to contact the advertised business to get more information, place an order, enroll in a service plan, etc. Advertisers have attempted to facilitate this reaction by including electronic sources of information in close proximity to the visual advertisements. A user may then hold or scan their WCD near a printed barcode or target to download information relevant to the visual indicia. This information, may contain links to a website on the Internet, contact information (e.g., telephone numbers, email addresses, etc.), or other information that may be of further interest to a user.
Information providers, however, face a problem in that the targeted consumer is often only momentarily in range of an advertisement. For example, a person strolling through a shopping mall passes by a plethora of printed indicia, such as posters or commercial messages in a display case, and may only stop briefly to view each advertisement. Therefore, the effective communication time must be very short so that the user's interest will not be overcome by a long download time. Further, the user may not be motivated to download information that will require an “extra step” beyond the initial download. Even if the user is persuaded to obtain more information from an Internet website, many factors may exist that would prevent or discourage a user from establishing the online connection at that instant. Consequently, in order to achieve the advertising goal of the information provider, any information that is locally downloaded by a user to a WCD must be in a form to captivate the user's attention without additional effort.
What is needed is a system that can download website-like content to the device of a user that will provide relevant information in an offline mode. This content must be compact, but must also be interactive and able to provide the user enough information so that later when the user is in a more ideal situation, they will connect to the Internet in order to download additional information. The downloaded content should be able to inform the user in a manner that is context appropriate to the user's current situation. More specifically, the downloaded information should be variable so that it may be tailored to various environmental or user characteristics. In addition, the user should not have to intervene manually in order to put the downloaded content in a viewable condition, and if the user does not have any interest in the information provided by the content, it should be automatically deleted from their device.